Stem Cell Research Center (South Korea)
The SCRC is a government-funded organization for supporting stem cell research which was launched in 2002 and aims to develop stem cell-mediated novel therapeutics for incurable diseases.The SCRC acts as a funding agency with 52 projects (52 Principle Investigators) currently running and selected throughout South Korea. The annual research budget of the center is US$10.4 million per year, with US$10.4 million per year allocated for stem cell research (~US$ 152 million for 10 years from 2002 to 2012). Furthe to this, a national network entitled Korean Society for Stem Cell Research (http://www.stem-cell.or.kr) has been constructed to aid facilitate stem cell research throughout South Korea.
The recent and future strategy of the SCRC can be split into three clear phases:
- Phase 1 (2002~2005) involved the establishment of the basic platform for stem cell research.
- Phase 2 (2005~2008) involves the developing of core techniques for stem cell research.
- Phase 3 (2008~2012) will involve clinical and industrial application of stem cells.
The Stem Cell Research Center (www.stem.or.kr) is the biggest stem cell center supported by Ministry of Science and Technology (www.most.go.kr) and there are several centers supported by Ministry of Health and Welfare (www.mohw.go.kr) and other Ministries. Also, many non-government sectors support stem cell research centers in Korea.
As an indicator of the output of the center a number of recent published papers are listed below:
1. Improvement of postnatal neovascularization by human embryonic stem cell derived endothelial-like cell transplantation in a mouse model of hindlimb ischemia. Circulation. 2007 Nov 20;116(21):2409-19.
2. Directed differentiation of human embryonic stem cells towards a pancreatic cell fate. Diabetologia. 2007 Jun;50(6):1228-38.
3. Efficient induction of oligodendrocytes from human embryonic stem cells. Stem Cells. 2007 Feb;25(2):419-24.
4. Involvement of E-selectin in recruitment of endothelial progenitor cells and angiogenesis in ischemic muscle. Blood. 2007 Dec 1;110(12):3891-9.
5. Identification of a novel role of T cells in postnatal vasculogenesis: characterization of endothelial progenitor cell colonies. Circulation. 2007 Oct 9;116(15):1671-82.
For further information please visit: www.stem.or.kr and www.koreastemcellbank.org (under construction). You may also with to visit the Ministry of Health and Welfare (www.mohw.go.kr).
